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Parks and Recreation Management, Bachelor of Science
- Available Emphasis Areas:
- Community, Commercial and Tourism - Emphasis
- Outdoor Education and Leadership - Emphasis
- Park Protection - Emphasis
If you have a keen interest in the outdoors and desire to help ensure the availability of future park, recreation, and leisure service opportunities, a degree in Parks and Recreation Management will help you pursue this career. Graduates find jobs with municipal parks and recreation departments, private resorts, federal land-management agencies, correctional institutions, nonprofit organizations, and a variety of other outlets in the industry.
Northern Arizona University's location is perfect for studying parks and recreation with six National Forests and a dozen units of the National Park Service system within a half-day's drive of campus, including the nearby Grand Canyon. Degree coursework will help prepare you for a career that encourages healthy lifestyles and enjoyment of the outdoors.
Please note that not all emphases are available online. Check with your advisor for additional information.
Through this Bachelor of Science degree in Parks and Recreation Management, recreation resource professionals are prepared for diverse careers in the field of parks and recreation. The PRM Program focuses on small class size, high student-teacher interaction, on-site field experiences, and experiential learning opportunities. The faculty are are dedicated to expanding the scholarly knowledge base of people and organizations to enhance the quality of leisure experiences and places.
This program is accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions (COAPRT) and recognized by the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)
This program is accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions (COAPRT).
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Career Accordion Open
Career opportunities that might be pursued:
- Forest/Park service
- Recreation planning
- Urban planning
- Leisure travel industry
- Land management
- Nonprofit organizations
With further education, one of these paths is possible:
- Municipal parks and recreation director
- National park service administrator
- Urban planning commissioner
- University professor
Requirements Accordion Closed
University Requirements
To receive a bachelor's degree at Northern Arizona University, you must complete at least 120 units of credit that minimally includes a major, the liberal studies requirements, and university requirements as listed below.
- All of Northern Arizona University's liberal studies, diversity, junior-level writing, and capstone requirements.
- All requirements for your specific academic plan(s).
- At least 30 units of upper-division courses, which may include transfer work.
- At least 30 units of coursework taken through Northern Arizona University, of which at least 18 must be upper-division courses (300-level or above). This requirement is not met by credit-by-exam, retro-credits, transfer coursework, etc.
- A cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0 on all work attempted at Northern Arizona University.
Overview Accordion Closed
Overview
In addition to University Requirements:
- At least 54 units of major requirements
- At least 18 units of minor, emphasis, or individualized study requirements
- Up to 9 units of major prefix courses may be used to satisfy Liberal Studies requirements; these same courses may also be used to satisfy major requirements
- Elective courses, if needed, to reach an overall total of at least 120 units
Please note that you may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.
| Minimum Units for Completion | 120 |
| Major GPA | C |
| Highest Mathematics Required | STA 270 |
| Emphasis, Minor, Certificate | Required |
| Fieldwork Experience/Internship | Fieldwork Experience/Internship is required. |
| University Honors Program | Optional |
| Accelerated Undergraduate/Graduate Plan | Optional |
| AZ Transfer Students complete AGEC-A | Recommended |
| Progression Plan Link | View Progression Plan |
Purpose Statement
The Northern Arizona University (NAU), Parks and Recreation Management faculty, staff and students are committed to promoting successful professional careers, service learning, active healthy life-styles, life-long education, global awareness, and creating meaningful social connections between individuals and their surrounding environment.
- Success as Professionals: We believe in equipping our students with essential entry level professional skills which lead to successful careers in parks, recreation, tourism or related organizations.
- Service Learning: We believe in integrating teaching and learning experiences through meaningful community service focusing on civic responsibility and strengthening communities.
- Global Awareness: We believe in creating opportunities, awareness and experiences focused on diversity, international travel, and education.
- Life-Long Education: We believe individuals who continually engage in new recreation and leisure experiences learn new skills and gain valuable knowledge and help promote positive aspects of human existence.
- Connection to others and the Environment: We believe that the human condition of compassion for others and the surrounding environment can be fostered and supported through participation in leisure activities which raise awareness of overall inter-connectedness and thereby creating a more sustainable future.
- Healthy Life-Styles: We believe that involvement in leisure and recreation activities leads to decision making for better balanced healthy life-styles, effectively lowering illness (both physical and psychological), and allows people to live more rewarding and fulfilled lives
Student Learning Outcomes
Outcomes align with Standards from the Council on Accreditation for Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions
Students graduating from the program shall:
- Demonstrate the following entry-level knowledge: a) the nature and scope of the relevant park, recreation, tourism or related professions and their associated industries; b) techniques and processes used by professionals and workers in these industries; and c) the foundation of the profession in history, science and philosophy.
- Demonstrate the ability to design, implement, and evaluate services that facilitate targeted human experiences and that embrace personal and cultural dimensions of diversity.
- Demonstrate the ability to design, implement, and evaluate services that facilitate targeted human experiences and that embrace personal and cultural dimensions of diversity.
- Demonstrate, through a comprehensive internship of not less than 400 clock hours and no fewer than 10 weeks, the potential to succeed as professionals at supervisory or higher levels in park, recreation, tourism, or related organizations. The PRM program expects to accomplish these outcomes in the following ways
Community, Commercial & Tourism Emphasis
Students within this emphasis will have the ability to:
- Create, organize, identify sponsors, market, implement and evaluate large community events
- Describe the fundamental concepts and principles of ecotourism and sustainable development as it relates to transportation, lodging and cultural impacts.
- Use accounting and budgeting practices to prepare, analyze and interpret financial statements
- Respond to budgetary constraints while achieving the positive guest outcomes
- Develop, use and evaluate appropriate and effective strategies to address cultural differences, values and expectations in the planning and implementation of recreation programming.
- Plan, design and operate recreation facilities and adjoining areas to increase tourism, commercial, and community benefits
- Design programming in a manner that best promotes cultural and environmental awareness.
Park Protection Emphasis
Students within this emphasis will have the ability to:
- Develop and apply wilderness first responder techniques in response to medical and outdoor emergencies in backcountry and other remote settings (includes a three-year Wilderness First Responder Certification).
- Articulate the functions of park operations, management and protection in the United States in terms of its historical roots, structure, and contemporary issues.
- Analyze and evaluate Federal regulations protecting America’s natural resources
- Examination of the evolution of environmental laws regulating the consumptive and non-consumptive uses of plants, wildlife and fish
- Apply the basic precepts of criminal law, authority and jurisdiction in the protection of state and national parks
- Acquire knowledge, skills, and abilities in law enforcement tactics (e.g., firearms, physical control techniques, emergency vehicle operations)
Outdoor Education & Leadership Emphasis
Students within this emphasis will have the ability to:
- Make critical decisions related to injury and illness prevention, assessment, treatment and evacuation of patient(s), through application of wilderness first responder training, in response to medical and outdoor emergencies, while in wilderness and other remote backcountry settings.
- Implement the basic hard and soft skills necessary to competently lead others in outdoor environments of the Southwest with a focus on canyon terrain.
- Develop experiential curriculum lesson plans and effectively deliver to a pre-determined audience in a wilderness environment.
- Lead Leave No Trace Trainer Courses and Awareness Workshops within the standards of the Leave No Trace Master Educator certification
- Analyze an in-depth case study of an outdoor non-profit organization and/or for-profit company of their choosing.
Details Accordion Closed
Details
Major Requirements
This major requires 72 to 78 units distributed as follows:
- Parks and Recreation Common Course Requirements: 54 units
- Complete a PRM Emphasis, Minor or Individualized Study: 18 to 24 units
- Community, Commercial and Tourism Emphasis: 18 units
- Outdoor Education and Leadership Emphasis: 18 units
- Park Protection Emphasis: 18 units
- Minor: 18 to 24 units
- Individualized Study: 18 units
Take the following 54 units with at least 27 units taken at NAU:- PRM 205, PRM 220, PRM 252, PRM 275, PRM 308, PRM 326, PRM 350, PRM 360, PRM 383, PRM 426, PRM 447, PRM 498C (36 units)
- PRM 346W which meets the junior-level writing requirement (3 units)
- PRM 408 which meets the senior capstone requirement. (You may only take this course after completing PRM 308, and all but two of the other courses above.) (6 units)
- ACC 205, CST 111, STA 270 (9 units)
Students majoring in Parks and Recreation Management must complete 18 units in one of the following:- An Emphasis
- A Minor
- Individualized Study. You must work with your advisor to determine the courses you will use for this student-individualized plan as early as possible to ensure that you graduate in a timely fashion. Please be aware that your advisor must approve these 18 units of coursework.
Emphasis Requirements (Select one):
Accelerated Bachelor's to Master's Program
This program is available as an Accelerated Undergraduate/Graduate Plan. Accelerated Programs provide the opportunity for outstanding undergraduates working on their bachelor’s degree to simultaneously begin work on a master’s degree. Departments may allow students to complete both degrees in an accelerated manner by approving up to 12 units applicable toward both degrees. Students must apply to the accelerated program and the master’s program by the application deadline, and meet all requirements as listed on the Accelerated Bachelor's to Master's Programs to be considered for admission. Admission to programs is competitive and qualified applicants may be denied because of limits on the number of students admitted each year. Be sure to speak with your advisor regarding your interest in Accelerated Programs.
General Electives
Additional coursework is required, if, after you have met the previously described requirements, you have not yet completed a total of 120 units of credit.
You may take these remaining courses from any academic areas, using these courses to pursue your specific interests and goals. We encourage you to consult with your advisor to select the courses that will be most advantageous to you. (Please note that you may also use prerequisites or transfer credits as electives if they weren't used to meet major, minor, or liberal studies requirements.)
Additional Information
Also note that you must maintain a 2.0 cumulative grade point average in the lower-division core in order to move forward into upper-division core courses. In addition, you must have a "C" or better in all lower- and upper-division core courses, including repeated courses, in order to graduate.
Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also take. For prerequisite information click on the course or see your advisor.
